A Heat Pad for Parents Who Always Feel Cold

Your parents are in a jacket while everyone else is comfortable.

They want the aircon off, or the fan pointed somewhere else. It’s easy to dismiss as a preference, but there are real reasons older people feel the cold more, and a few of them are worth checking with a doctor.

Why older people feel colder

• Less muscle. Muscle generates heat. Muscle mass falls with age, so there’s less internal heating.
• Thinner skin and less fat under it. Less insulation.
• Slower circulation, especially to the hands and feet.
• Less movement. Someone sitting most of the day generates far less heat than someone walking around.
• Slower response to temperature change. The body’s thermostat isn’t as quick.

Worth a doctor’s visit

Feeling cold all the time can also be a symptom. Ask a GP if your parent also has:

• Tiredness, weight gain, dry skin or constipation, which can point to an underactive thyroid
• Paleness, breathlessness or dizziness, which can suggest anaemia
• Fingers or toes that turn white or blue in cold, which can be Raynaud’s
• Numbness or burning in the feet, common with diabetes
• Unexplained weight loss

A blood test settles most of these.

If you’re buying them a heat pad

It’s a thoughtful gift, and it’s also the group most likely to be burned by one. Thin skin, reduced sensation and a tendency to doze off in the chair make a bad combination. On the gift side of it, see giving a heat pad as a gift.

Set it up with them rather than just handing it over:

1. Lowest setting only. Show them which one that is. If the controller is fiddly, mark it. See what temperature a heating pad should be.
2. Cover always on, plus a layer of clothing between the pad and skin.
3. 15 minutes, with a timer. A plug-in timer switch does this for them, and costs a few dollars.
4. Never overnight, never asleep. This is the one rule to repeat. See is it safe to sleep with a heating pad on?
5. Check the skin after the first few sessions. You’re looking for even light pink, not blotchy red or white patches. The pattern to watch for over months is toasted skin syndrome.
6. Sort the plug properly. If the pad has a 2-pin plug, buy a good fused adapter and set it up for them. See using a 2-pin plug heat pad safely in Singapore.
7. Watch the cord. Route it so it isn’t a trip hazard near a chair they get in and out of.
8. Walk them through the first week rather than leaving them to work it out: your first week with a heat pad.

Who shouldn’t use one

Don’t give a heat pad to a parent who has diabetes with any numbness in the feet or legs, reduced sensation after a stroke, dementia or difficulty telling you when something’s too hot, or who takes sleeping tablets in the evening. A hot water bottle carries the same risks, plus scalds.

Full list: who should not use a heating pad.

Safer ways to keep them warm

• Layers, particularly a warm top layer, socks and something around the neck
• Aircon a degree or two higher, and the vent pointed away from their chair
• Warm drinks through the day
• Getting up and moving every hour, which warms them and helps their joints
• A blanket over the lap, which does most of what a heat pad does with none of the risk. On the powered version and its own risks, see an electric blanket vs a heat pad.

If the cold comes with stiff, achy joints, heat before their morning walk is a reasonable use. See knee osteoarthritis: heat for morning stiffness, hand arthritis in the morning, and if it’s their back, heat for back pain in older people.

Clinically reviewed by: Nigel Chua (Hand Occupational Therapist) & Louise Yow (Physiotherapist). This article is general information, not a diagnosis. electricheatpad.com sells electric heat pads.